Getting Started with Darnit Development

Welcome to the darnit contributor documentation. Choose your path below based on what you want to work on.

Choose Your Path

I want to use darnit with Claude Code

Use skills for guided compliance workflows — no need to call individual tools.

1. Using Skills — Install, usage examples, profiles, multi-module support

I want to work on the framework

The core darnit framework — plugin system, sieve pipeline, configuration, MCP server.

1. Environment Setup — Prerequisites, fork, clone, install
2. Framework Development — Architecture, separation rules, sieve pipeline (with diagrams)
3. Testing Guide — Running and writing tests
4. Development Workflow — Pre-commit checklist, branching, PRs

I want to create or modify an implementation

Compliance framework plugins — TOML controls, CEL expressions, remediation, custom handlers.

1. Environment Setup — Prerequisites, fork, clone, install
2. Implementation Development — TOML controls, pass types, handlers, entry points
3. CEL Reference — CEL expression syntax and common pitfalls
4. Testing Guide — Running and writing tests
5. Development Workflow — Pre-commit checklist, branching, PRs

Tutorials (complete copy-paste walkthroughs):

• Add a New Control — Add a control to the OpenSSF Baseline
• Create a New Implementation — Build a plugin from scratch

I want to assemble an org-specific posture from existing implementations

Composition — TOML-only mix of slices from already-installed implementations ("OpenSSF Baseline L1+L2 + three named SLSA controls + our internal controls"). No Python composition code; upstream sources stay upgrade-current.

1. Environment Setup — Prerequisites, fork, clone, install
2. Composition Quickstart — End-to-end walkthrough for an acme-baseline composite
3. TOML schema contract — [[compose]], [overrides."ID"], allow_conflicts semantics
4. Implementation Guide §12 — When to compose vs fork, conflict-resolution escape hatches, provenance contract

Quick Reference

Guide	What it covers
Environment Setup	Prerequisites, fork/clone, install, verify
Framework Development	Package structure, separation rules, sieve pipeline, Mermaid diagrams
Implementation Development	TOML controls, pass types, handlers, entry points, MCP tools
CEL Reference	CEL syntax, context variables, escaping rules, pitfalls
Testing Guide	Running tests, test structure, writing new tests
Development Workflow	Pre-commit checklist, branching, commits, PRs
Troubleshooting	Common issues and solutions

Having Issues?

Check the Troubleshooting Guide first. If that doesn't help, open an issue.